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Video: Nipsey Hussle, “Keys to the City”

Nipsey Hussle started rapping, in LA's color-coded gang zoo, when he was eight years old. This Dan "The Man" Melamid-directed video for his "Keys to the City," a track from last year's hearty The Marathon mixtape, jumps off the block, flying over Los Angeles' oceans, freeways, palms and boutiques. The panoramic imagery serves as a no-smog breathing space and mental sanctuary for the sidewalk-tethered Angelenos whose hearts Nipsey seeks. Interviewed by Felipe Delerme in FADER #61, Hussle said he hoped to make tracks his neighbors would enjoy day-to-day. "If they was gonna rob something, play this on your way to your robbery, nigga, or if you wanna go fuck a bitch, play this. I wanted to have music that represented all lifestyles and was relevant to the motherfuckers around me."